orange_jordy wrote:
I am just starting to shop for a truck to replace my current 2006 Ford F150 supercrew. The truck has been unreliable for the last two years and the wife would like me to get rid of it so she feels more secure when we go out camping next summer. The thing is for us (and probably most folks) money is tight and we can't afford a monthly payment on a new truck so we decided to look at the previously owned market. I have only done some online browsing and not actually gone to look at anything yet. Our camper is the same one we have had for years(Gulfstream Amerilite 24RS, 7400 lb gvwr) and it meets our needs for now and the future so we have no plans to upgrade at this time, however we have talked about getting a truck that is large enough to comfortably step up to a larger camper without having to upgrade the truck. From the bit of reading I have done, I am looking at trucks in the 2004 to 2007 model years and I am looking at 3/4 ton and 1 ton both gas and diesel. The wife will not let me look at another Ford so I guess I am looking for information on Dodge and GM trucks from those model years. I am not biased toward one brand over the other, I am just looking for the best truck for my money. I have never owned or driven a diesel truck before so I don't know much except that in the years I am considering people seem to like the 5.9 Cummins and the Duramax LBZ. I know the 5.7 Hemi and 6.0 Vortec are strong gasoline engines as well. I will be using the truck as a daily driver to work(25 km each way on the freeway)as well as towing the camper during the summer. We mostly do shorter trips ,under 1000 km round trip, but we have discussed doing a couple of trips that would take us up to 6000 km total. If I could get some pointers or pros and cons from people that have owned or operated trucks in these years, it would be greatly appreciated.
Fix what you have for now, it WILL be cheaper than buying AND FIXING someone ELSE'S "problem child".
Buying older or slightly newer USED vehicles to replace your problem child will result in more frustration even with different brands. Folks tend to USE their trucks and if they have not replaced front end parts by now, YOU WILL be doing that.
You simply do not know the "history" of someone else's vehicle and that in the long run could cost you more to "fix" than what you have.
For the money you will be tossing out there for those years you could rebuild the entire front end, replace the engine and perhaps even the transmission in your vehicle.
